Customers can now use Pontos Itaú balances to cover eligible Pix purchases in the bank’s app, although points cannot be combined with another payment method or used through Pix Automático.
Itaú Unibanco is letting customers use accumulated loyalty points to pay for Pix transactions through its app, broadening the way rewards can be spent beyond the usual redemptions for products, travel perks or cashback.
According to the bank, the feature began rolling out gradually in October to users of the Pontos Itaú programme, with full availability expected by the end of the year. Felipe Piccoli Aversa, the bank’s director of cards, accounts and payments, said the service will not carry a fee and is designed for everyday spending.
The new option works with Pix payments made by key, QR code and contactless tap-to-pay, but not with Pix Automático, the recurring-payment service used for items such as subscriptions and utility bills. Customers must have enough points to cover the full amount of a purchase, as the app will not allow points to be combined with another payment method to make up the difference.
Before confirming a payment, the app shows how many points are available, how many are required and the equivalent value in reais. The use of points is then recorded in the rewards statement, while the bank has declined to disclose the conversion rate, saying it may vary over time and that customers will always see the value before completing the transaction.
The feature applies only to points earned in Itaú’s own Points and Cashback programme. Balances from partner schemes such as Latam Pass and TudoAzul cannot be used for Pix payments, even though they remain available for other kinds of redemption.
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